Yahweh Sect Trial Wraps Up on Grisly Note

A prosecutor displayed grisly autopsy photos and waved a sword in front of jurors during closing arguments Thursday in the racketeering trial of black supremacist Yahweh Ben Yahweh and 15 followers.

“Death by sword was their preferred method of execution; decapitation and amputation of ears by death angels was their calling card,” prosecutor Trudy Novicki said.

The government claims that the religious sect leader and his co-defendants conspired to commit 14 murders, two attempted murders, arson and other violence to maintain discipline in their Temple of Love church.

Yahweh, 56, and his co-defendants face up to 40 years in prison if convicted of conspiracy to commit the crimes.

The church offered a message of black power and self-help, eventually attracting thousands of followers across the country and the attention of Miami politicians and civic leaders.

Novicki reminded jurors, however, that evidence and testimony showed errant followers and “white devils” unfortunate enough to get in their way began turning up dead in 1981.

The prosecutor showed several life-size photos of alleged Yahweh victims, including a homeless man whose throat was slashed and ear partially severed in 1986, and a Yahweh member stomped unconscious and then beheaded in 1981.

Yahweh, who traded his given name of Hulon Mitchell Jr. for the Hebrew words meaning “God, son of God,” denies responsibility for the killings, saying a breakaway group led by the government’s key witness was to blame.

That witness, Robert Rozier, joined the sect after a brief stint with the Oakland Raiders football team and went on to commit at least seven murders. He is serving a 22-year sentence.